If you were to send your daughter with food allergies to Girl Guides, how would you want us to take care of her? We have a health form where you can list your allergies and tick off whether it is life-threatening or not, and you can list medications that she is to carry herself, such as inhalers and auto-injectors; you can even list dietary and activity restrictions. The medication form has information on asthma and anaphylaxis, with links to Anaphylaxis Canada. It's a start, but it isn't enough.

And so... I've placed a request into National Council for some updates to be made - mandatory allergy action plans for anyone with an allergy listed on their form, allergy training modules for leaders, etc. I've even mentioned how 'mild' food allergies can turn life-threatening without warning and how a girl with 'egg' on her allergy list and no auto-injector should raise red flags... but most leaders don't know that!

The girls in my unit are lucky to have two leaders who deal with food allergies every day, and perhaps it's why we have 4 girls in my unit with allergies, plus me. We can all go to camp, have fun, and be safe. We have food-free meetings and whenever food is brought it is safe for everyone or steps are taken to segregate safe and unsafe foods. Unfortunately, most other units aren't quite as inclusive.

Just thought I'd post this here... not sure what will come of it, but the Alberta Commissioner thought I raised some very important points. If you have any suggestions or recommendations, feel free to post them here.

Good idea about the list of common places where allergens can be hidden (wheat/gluten in play doh, nuts in bird seed, etc.) I recently had to do some investigation to find out if pine cones were safe for people with tree nut allergies - and they are. I'll be sure to mention it!

However, there is no official allergy badge in Canada, and it is only vaguely included in a Guide interest badge - cook a dish that is suitable for one of the following diets: diabetic, cardiac, gluten free, low fat, or lactose free. Again, definitely something worth mentioning.

Thanks for bringing this up, Spacecanada. I have thought about putting my DD in guides, but we have a few other things going on and I don't want to over schedule the kids. It's something I would consider, though, and if the leaders were trained in anaphylaxis and they kept allergies in mind when baking, etc, that would certainly be a bonus!

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